Updates from Ethiopia

Friday, Sept 25- morning

We are about to start day 2! We had a restful night in the guest house and enjoyed spening the morning with other guests. There is one family hefre from Indiana that adopted a 7 month old girl, Kidest. She is beautiful, and I got to love on her during breakfast! There is another family from NC that is picking up their 18th child. They have adopted 5 from Ethiopia in the last 5 years alone, and their other kids are from all over the world. They are amazing. There is another family here that sold all of their belongings and moved here at the beginning of Sept with their 12 year old and 10 year old to equip churches here in Ethiopia that are being carried along by their North American denomination- so that they can be self-governing and self-sufficient. They are an amazing family. We are about to go to do some sightseeing with a friend of a friend.

We love you! Keep praying! We will find out this afternoon if we can get more info about Zavion and wehere he was found, etc. We would love to go visit- we'll see.



Friday, Sept 25- evening

We had a tremendous and full second day on our adventure. We were blessed with an amazing breakfast here at the guest house , enjoying fellowship with new friends bonded together through our deep love for Christ and Africa. A friend of a friend, Jared, met us here at the house around 11. Jared moved here fulltime in 2007 and is currently serving as youth pastor for a large church here in Addis. Spending the day with him was an incredible blessing. We secured a driver for 400 birr ($32 US) for the day and drove around Addis.

This is when the wrestling really began for me- the wrestling that I knew was going to be coming quickly as we ventured into the city in the daylight. We know nothing of the poverty that was not the exception, rather, the rule, as we traveled the streets. There were begging children, hungry, shoeless mothers with babies strapped to their backs, and men covered in burns and old blankets who couldn't even speak to ask for their handouts. 7 weeks ago when we lost my Dad, I expereinced deep pain like I never have before. However, I know nothing of the suffering that these individuals endure on a daily basis. To actually look deep into the eyes of this kind of suffering, and have no idea how to even put a bandaid on it much less truly make a difference, is a difficult place to be. Especially for someone like me, who cries at the mere thought of atrocities such as these- mush less seeing them face to face. I found myself asking "why" to God in many different ways throughout the day. And to be brutally honest, I found myself asking Him where exactly He was here.

At the end of the day, after discussing my wrestling at length with both Mark and Jared over bagels and the most delicious coffee I have ever experienced (that was our third of the day- you can't beat a macchiato for the equivalent of 30 cents US) we went to the youth service for Jared's church, Beza. "Youth" at that church is loosely defined as 13-30 year olds- can you imagine? We had the privilege of praying with the team that was leading the service before they began- a group of 20 somethings that were 100% sold out for Jesus and for Ethiopia. The service was centered around some young professionals that spoke to the youth regarding their education and how to incorporate Jesus into their scholarly and professional lives. These young professionals were pouring out their lives and their testimonies on a Friday night to a group of students who may be coming from homes where they are told their lives won't amount to anything. These kids (some were actually our age :) ) were worshipping and seeking their God in amazing, beautiful ways. Watching them surrender to their God was powerful, moving and convicting. It was awesome. God was there- just as He was in those slums I mentioned above. Sure, it was a little easier to see Him moving amongst those youth, but I still believe He was there with that poor mother and those desperate children. For it is when we are at our beaking point that He is there the loudest.

I am still wrestling, and know the reality is that I will continue to wrestle throughout our trip and well into the days after we return home. Wondering what God wants us to do with all that He is showing to us about how the majority of the world actually lives is something that I know will consume my thoughts and my prayer life- but maybe that's just where He wants me.

We love you and thank you for your prayers. They are sustaining us as we experience both joy and heartbreak- both within hours of each other.





Saturday, Sept 26- morning
It is a beautiful day in Addis- sunny and probably in the 70s. We had a restful nights sleep after playing cards with a wonderful family here at the guest house. We learned a new game- Nertz. We are hooked, and will teach you if you want :). We awoke to the sunny skies this morning and some awesome news that we had been praying for- more information about Zavion's story. We discovered the district where he was found- on June 16, 2008. He was found in a section of the "merkato" (market). Our agency actually recommended we don't go into that section of town , as it can be dangerous for foreigners. We also got the name of the orphanage he was at before he was in the care of our agnecy. It just so happened (thank you God!) that Jervain, a woman staying here at the guesthouse, had hired her driver to take her to the merkato this morning. And lo and behold, he used to work for an adoption agency here in Addis and knew exactly where the area of the merkato Zavion was found as well as where the orphanage was. We hopped in the car with Jervain and Ephraim (her driver) and headed to the merkato. What an experience! Ethiopians everywhere, selling and bartering their goods. It was the picture I had in my head of a local street market- but much busier. I was thankful Ephraim was with us. He loves Jesus and speaks very good english and was wonderful to be walking around the merkato with. He helped Jervain buy the fabric she was looking for (she is outfitting their new Ethiopian home for the next 5-10 years) and then led us to the area where Zavion was found. There is no way to know exactly where he was left, however, there is a bus station in that area and Ephraim said more than likely he would have been left there. He said that many women go to the station with their babies to find shelter from the cold and rain. While I do not know the exact spot, it blessed my heart to no end to know that he was left in such a populated place. There was no way that he would not have been found there, which says to me whoever left him wanted him to be found. Praise God! It was an overwhelming experience to walk those streets and imagine what was going through the mind of whomever (more than likely his mother) left him while they walked and held him, looking for the perfect spot to leave him. In the midst of people selling their wares, children selling gum to make less than 10 cents US and women begging, all I could think about was what that moment would have been like for both Zavion and that person who loved him enough to leave him somewhere he would be found. Was he scared? Was he hungry? Did he have any idea someone he knew and loved was leaving him- and leaving him for his good? I will never know, and maybe it's better that way. While my heart was filled with all these questions and musings, it was also full with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for God's faithfulness and sovereignty. Thank You Father, that You led us to a driver today that grew up in the merkato, that came to know Your Son as Savior, and delighted in taking us to this place that is so crucial in the story of our son. Wow. After we left the merkato we headed out for lunch and more macchiatos and then to the orphanage. As it was a Saturday there was no one there that could give us any information- we were asked by the nannies to come back during the week. We are hopeful that we will find someone there that can possibly tell us a little more about him as an infant- and possibly more about his discovery. We are looking forward now to dinner to celebrate Juliette's birthday. Juliette is the daughter of Jervain- they are the ones that moved here this month to begin mobilizing churches in Addis. She is a delightful young lady, and we are blessed to be able to celebrate her with her family tonight. We feel we are making some lifelong friends here and are hopeful we can encourage Tim, Jervain, Juliette and Timmy via email when we go home and they remain here, living amongst these beautiful people and ministering to them. We are looking forward to Monday, when we will finally hold our precious son in our arms. Until then, we will continue to soak up this beautiful place, and I will continue to wrestle with all I am experiencing. Today brought more poverty, more suffering, more depseration and more brokenness face to face. We drove by a man with no legs, countless women with babies strapped to their backs, children shining shoes for a few coins, homes made of corrugated tin and mud... we drove by hopelessness. With God's help, I will figure out what to do with all of it, Until then I will be thankful for this time and continue to seek His face in the midst of utter brokenness.